The present invention relates to cooling systems for internal combustion engines of vehicles and more specifically relates to fan and radiator assemblies of such systems as are embodied in industrial tractors.
Typically, an industrial tractor is equipped with a fan and radiator assembly mounted at one end of the tractor, with the fan being coupled to an exposed end of the engine crankshaft so as to be continuously driven whenever the engine is running. This location of the fan and radiator assembly has the disadvantage that when the tractor is working in dusty environments, the fan draws air from areas containing a relatively high concentration of particles and these particles become entrained in the stream of air forced through the radiator by the fan and thus "sandblast" and cause wear to the relatively soft core of the radiator.
In the case of an articulated, four-wheel drive tractor, the overall length of the tractor is kept reasonable only by mounting the engine above the differential housing of the drive to one of the pairs of drive wheels, however, such positioning of the engine raises the center of gravity of and consequently adversely affects the stability of the tractor. Also, the torque converter is then positioned such as to be difficult to service and a relatively high drop box is required to connect the engine output shaft to the differential housing.
It is common practice to provide an industrial tractor of the aforedescribed type with shrouding and baffling arranged to intercept and dampen noise generated by the engine and fan. Such shrouding and baffling, and the engine and any other components which may be in the airstream producted by the fan impedes the flow of air through and thus lowers the efficiency of the fan. Along with this lower efficiency comes higher noise so that a compromise between quietness and cooling exists.